GUIDELINES FOR HUMAN RIGHTS PAPERS

From the syllabus:  

2. Examination plus Paper option: Earn a minimum grade of A- on either of the first two examinations. In addition to the taking the third exam, write an 8-10 page essay on a mutually agreeable topic. Caution: writing a paper makes you eligible for a grade of A in the course, but does not guarantee it. You still must do A level work. The three exams and the paper will each contribute one quarter of your final course grade.

I welcome a wide range of subjects, although all topics must be approved by May 28.  Please come see me to discuss your topic. I want you to write about something that will hold your interest and enable you to dazzle me with your analytical insights. I also want you to teach me something I don't already know. One way to identify a topic is to think of three possible subjects, and then write a simple paragraph describing what you might do to develop each one. Bring these paragraphs to me, or better still, e-mail them to me before we meet. We can then talk the topics through to help you identify a project that can easily be researched, as well as provide a measure of wholesome entertainment for the rest of the quarter.  

Papers will be due on Wednesday, June 11, at the time of our final examination.

In previous years, students have written on immigration, prostitution,  kidnapping in Colombia, gun ownership, animal rights, eugenics, the internment of Japanese-Americans, the School of the Americas, and Gays and Lesbians in the military, among others. The best papers have presented clear arguments, backed up by persuasive evidence.

Documentation: You must document facts, figures, quotations, and specific ideas that are not your own. It does not matter what format you use for giving references, just so you are clear and consistent. For web sources, indicate the author and date, as well as the website. The website alone is not sufficient, as these often vanish without warning, making it impossible for others to use your sources (which is one of the purposes of footnotes, of course).

Basis for grading: Command of subject, sharpness of analysis, style of presentation. While I encourage your best efforts toward literary elegance, gracefulness of expression is not the fundamental factor in assigning grades. I care primarily about discovering if you know the material well and if you have interesting things to say about it.

Sloppy work: Sloppy work is not acceptable. It is difficult to read, and makes you look lazy and witless, which we know not to be true. So proofread your papers, making sure that your spelling is accurate and that your subjects and verbs agree in number, etc. I am particularly put off by two instances of bad style, both of which you should avoid: sexist language (including the feminization of nations through the pronoun "she"--a country, having no hormones, is properly "it"), and bizarre applications of the apostrophe. If you do not know how to use this quirky punctuation mark correctly, this is the time to learn (here's how), as your grade will fall one letter for apostrophe errors.

Format: Plastic covers are ecologically unsound and tend to fall off in any event, so just staple your paper together. Before you hand in your paper, please make sure you have a photocopy or electronic backup. Professors try not to lose papers, but it has happened.

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